The present invention relates generally to a medical accessory for use with the delivery of a fluid to a patient or the collection of a fluid from a patient.
In hospitals, nursing homes, clinics, physician""s offices or other medical facilities, it is often necessary to dispense fluids, such as sterile water, glycene, sorbital, saline and other irrigating solutions or other fluids or medicines to patients. A conventional way to dispense a fluid is to suspend a supply of the fluid in a bag or bottle above the patient, connect a length of tubing to an outlet of the fluid supply, and deliver the fluid to the patient via the tubing. By suspending the fluid supply above the patient, the fluid can be delivered to the patient at a desired pressure.
In some cases, the delivery of such fluids in this manner occurs over a period of several hours. In some situations, it is desired to monitor the delivery of the fluid so that the delivery of fluid can be stopped before the fluid runs low or so that a new supply of the fluid can be provided to maintain an uninterrupted flow to the patient. In some situations, the patient may experience undesirable effects if a fluid being delivered runs low or even runs out before a nurse or other medical attendant detects the condition. These undesirable effects can include clotting, dehydration, improper medication dosage, and so on.
Fluid collection from patients includes similar concerns. Fluids, such as urine, are sometimes withdrawn from a patient via a tubing positioned in the patient""s bladder and collected in a container into which the tubing drains. If a container collecting the fluid becomes full without being noticed, the fluid may cease to be eliminated and distention or infection in the patient may occur.
In many cases, monitoring of fluid delivery to or drainage from patient is performed by having a medical attendant check on the patient on a regular basis until the need to change the fluid is observed. This type of monitoring requirement may impose demands on the time and attention of the medical attendant. Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide a way to conveniently monitor fluid being delivered to or being collected from a patient.
The subject matter disclosed herein relates generally to a safety device for use in hospitals, nursing homes or other locations where the dispensing of fluids to or the collection of fluids from patients takes place. The safety device is a fluid sensor apparatus for monitoring fluid in a container. In the case of fluid delivery, the fluid container holds a supply of a fluid to be delivered to the patient, for example, bags of saline. In the case of fluid collection, the container may be a drainage bag.
The fluid sensor apparatus comprises a housing having an upper hook extending from a top thereof to allow the housing to be suspended. A lower hook is telescopically received in the housing and extends from a bottom thereof. The lower hook is adapted for suspending a fluid container therefrom. The lower hook is movable relative to the upper hook. A cam member is located inside the housing and is movable relative thereto. The cam member is coupled to an upper end of the lower hook. A biasing member is coupled between a lower shoulder of the cam member and the housing. The biasing member is adapted to apply a force against the cam member to cause the cam member to be biased upward relative to the housing to an upper position. A switch is coupled to the housing and has an actuator located in relation to the cam member such that the switch is in a first state when the cam member is in the upper position. The switch is in a second state when a load suspended from the lower hook overcomes the force of the biasing member causing the cam member to be moved to a lower position relative to the housing. An alarm coupled to the switch is operative to indicate a low fluid condition when the switch is in the first state. The alarm may be an audible alarm, a visual alarm, or both.
According to a preferred aspect, the fluid sensor apparatus has an internal power source, e.g. batteries, that operate the alarm. Thus, the fluid sensor is self-contained.